“Let’s resolve to act collectively,” said the UN chief in a message marking the Human Rights Day that falls on December 10 with the theme - “Recover better: stand up for human rights.”
He said the COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced two fundamental truths about human rights saying human rights violations harm all.
The UN chief said the COVID-19 pandemic has had a disproportionate impact on vulnerable groups including frontline workers, people with disabilities, older people, women and girls, and minorities.
It has thrived because poverty, inequality, discrimination, the destruction of our natural environment and other human rights failures have created enormous fragilities in the societies, Guterres said.
At the same time, he said, the pandemic is undermining human rights, by providing a pretext for heavy-handed security responses and repressive measures that curtail civic space and media freedom.
The second truth highlighted by the pandemic is that human rights are universal and protect all. “An effective response to the pandemic must be based on solidarity and cooperation.”
Divisive approaches, authoritarianism and nationalism make no sense against a global threat, he said.
The UN chief said people and their rights must be front and centre of response and recovery. “We need universal, rights-based frameworks like health coverage for all, to beat this pandemic and protect us for the future.”
Guterres said, “My Call to Action for Human Rights spells out the central role of human rights in crisis response, gender equality, public participation, climate justice and sustainable development.”
Human Rights Day is observed every year on December 10 - the day the United Nations General Assembly adopted, in 1948, the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).
The UDHR is a milestone document that proclaims the inalienable rights which everyone is entitled to as a human being - regardless of race, colour, religion, sex, language, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status.
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